The present invention relates to a transporting arrangement for transporting motor vehicles, particularly private cars, in connection with motor vehicle parking buildings in which the vehicle is moved to a parking space without the assistance of a driver.
One such motor vehicle transporting arrangement is described in Swedish Pat. Specification No. 8500791-2.
The present motor vehicle transporting arrangement is intended for use in vehicle parking buildings in which a vehicle to be parked is transported, in horizontal and vertical directions, from the ground floor of the car park to an empty parking space therein, without the assistance of a driver and without using the vehicle wheels to roll the car. Such parking buildings are previously known, where each floor of the parking building is divided into a multiple of mutually adjacent vehicle parking spaces.
A particular advantage is afforded when such vehicle parking buildings are totally unmanned or are only partially manned. In this case, the vehicle is driven to a predetermined position in relation to the arrangement, and the requisite parking fee is paid into a parking meter, which in response issues a card or like receipt which, in addition to other information, discloses the location of a conceivable parking space in the building in which the parking facility is found. The arrangement includes a computer which is capable of finding an empty parking space with the aid of sensors, and of causing the car to be moved to said space. When collecting the vehicle, the card or like receipt is inserted into a card reader and the computer, subsequent to payment being made, controls the collection of the vehicle from its parking space.
As reported in the aforesaid Swedish Patent Specification, one serious problem encountered with vehicle parking arrangements of this kind resides in the difficulty of locking the vehicle relative to the transporting arrangement in a simple manner, without the assistance of a manual work. This problem is accentuated by the fact that different cars have different tracks or gauges, and different axle heights.
Another problem encountered with known vehicle transporting arrangements is that they have a considerable vertical extension, and consequently a considerable part of the vertical space in a vehicle parking building is occupied by the transporting arrangement and the various devices incorporated therein. Another problem with known vehicle parking arrangements of this kind is that the driver of the vehicle to be parked is required to position the vehicle accurately in both its longitudinal and its transverse directions.
The present invention affords a solution to these problems.